Gov. Bevin declares state of emergency

Gov. Matt Bevin has declared a state of emergency in order to give local areas the help they need during Friday’s winter storm.

In a statement, Bevin said the emergency order became effective at 1:30 pm on Friday, adding that his primary concern is the safety of citizens of the state.

“By declaring a state emergency we are giving emergency management the options they need to proactively respond to local needs,” Bevin said. “I thank all of the officials working hard to keep people safe and commerce flowing. We urge all citizens to remain at home and stay off of the roads allowing emergency services the opportunity to keep the roadways safe.”

The storm, which is impacting the eastern portion of the United States, has already dumped over seven inches of snow on some parts of the commonwealth.

The Kentucky Emergency Management Emergency Operations Center and Joint Information Center are monitoring the storm as it crosses Kentucky’s borders, and assisting in coordinating the response.

“The Commonwealth has come through the worst part of the snowfall event. The storm front should move out of the area by 7 pm EST. We’ve encountered sporadic power outages, but more specifically calls regarding slow moving traffic on interstates,” said Michael Dossett, Director of Kentucky Emergency Management.

“It is imperative that we allow our first responders the ability to provide timely services throughout the state. In that light, we are asking that our citizens refrain from travel on the interstate system for the remainder of this storm period,” Dossett continued. “By virtue of the executive order for a state of emergency, allied state agencies are now able to leverage resources that are beyond local government capabilities.”

The Kentucky National Guard was also placed on high alert by the administration on Thursday in case they are needed to provide additional assistance.

Nick Storm

Nick Storm is the Anchor and Managing Editor of Pure Politics available exclusively on Spectrum News. Pure Politics is the only nightly program dedicated to Kentucky politics. Nick covers all of the political heavyweights and his investigative work brings to light issues that might otherwise go unnoticed, like his coverage of the backlog of DNA rape kits waiting to be tested in Kentucky. Nick is also working on a feature length bio documentary Outlaw Poet: A documentary on Ron Whitehead. Pure Politics airs weeknight at 7 and 11:30 on Spectrum News. Follow Nick on Twitter @NStorm_Politics. Nick can be reached at 502-792-1107 or nicholas.storm@charter.com.